Originally Posted by KyKat
I'm not actually good at it, but I like to do it, so I do it and the quilts are going to be for my sisters, so they won't mind if they are not good. No quilt police here. I use a metal thimble on my "pushing" finger, but on my needle-gripping finger, I don't, and that's the one that's split now.
Try using a rubber fingertip - like the kind they use for counting money - on your gripper finger. Works a charm for me. I get them by the box from the office supply store; far cheaper than at the quilt shop. I also use small needle-nosed pliers for those needles that just won't pull through. The only fingers that I destroy are my 'under' fingers. Eventually they just callous over so it's not too bad. Keep up the good work.